John Kerry: “countless Americans have come to understand that the health care system in this country is in a total state of disarray…”

“countless Americans have come to understand that the health care system in this country is in a total state of disarray, if not crisis. It is a crisis of confidence. It is a crisis of coverage, bought and paid for with hard-earned dollars from our fellow taxpayers, but a coverage that seems to disappear when you need it the most. Our fellow citizens no longer believe that their insurance companies are prepared to provide them with the quality of service or the choice of doctors that they were promised or that they paid for with their premiums. Some health insurers have put saving costs way ahead of the prospect of saving lives. I think most people in the Senate have come to understand the nature of this crisis. The impact of the decisions of the insurance companies in countless stories across America and across my State of Massachusetts is immeasurable. Americans are suffering because the system puts the choices of the insurance company administrator far ahead of the choice of a doctor. The story of Ellen O'Malley, a mother of two, from Canton, MA, underscores the full measure of the problem that we face today.”